The Night's Heart
by Ervin1182
Summary: 16 years after the events of the second movie, we join a new generation of dragon riders. Though peace may end shortly when a secret ship is on the hunt for a mysterious dragon. Can Sigurd, a introvert runt, form a group of new riders to stop this rising threat? Warning: Blood, first story! Updates every Sunday
1. Prologue

I guess if no one knew about my old story of the same name then it doesn't matter, but for those who do know it and are wondering where it went: I didn't like so I restarted it with a lot more thought put into the story and characters!

I will try to post a chapter every Sunday just so I don't disappoint people who get into the story. I also want to say that I will be making a mini series afterwards showing the relationships of the characters and Berk-if people like this story or I get enough reviews. Without any more interruptions, I'll begin with the story of Sigurd, his gang and their dragons!

I decided to put a disclaimer at the beginning and hoping people won't think the HTTYD universe belongs to me, because it doesn't!

How To Train Your Dragon Books belong to Cressida Cowell

How To Train Your Dragon Movies belong to DreamWorks

All Ocs belong to me, but have been inspired by the HTTYD Universe

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Prologue 

Thunder rumbled in the distance as dark grey clouds drifted across the ocean. Restlessly, the waves churned violently shaking the wooden boat. Men screamed from the deck, trying to get a hold of the ship as the waves pulled it off course.

A young man, with sandy hair and storm-like eyes, stood at the front of the boat. He calmly ordered men around; his face plastered with a frown. His clothes consisted of a brown tunic with a fur cape draped over his shoulders; covering his right side, navy blue jeans and brown furred-boots. On his shoulders he wore shoulder pads baring a crest of a dragon with a sword through its stomach; a double-bladed sword clung to his thigh.

He reached out to grab the nearest person, "What dragons have we caught?"

"Two Nadders, a Zippleback and five Gronkles sir!" he replied while lifting his arm, so his hand was above his brow.

"That won't be enough to sell," his hand clenched into a fist and connected with the mast making it shudder in protest, "We need rare dragons to capture and sell!" The man he grabbed shrank in fear; he looked at him and huffed. He went stomping below deck to his office. He rummaged through a cupboard until he found a bottle of mead; unscrewed the lid and tipped the bottle up to his mouth. The liquid flowed down and he gulped three times before setting it down on his desk. Grabbing a map, he sat at the desk and observed it intensely.

Scanning over the map, he curled his fingers together and bit at one of them; concentration flashed in his eyes. The map had dragons scribbled at different spots. Different places. Different species. One dragon caught his eye- it seemed like nothing special- and had lines moving along the map. It kept heading South, until it stopped.

The boat rocked gently, as the storm began to calm. The winds calmed and brushed against the boat; urging it forward. The sound of wing beats and specks of shadows alerted the men on the ship. Hurriedly, they went to inform their captain; banging three times they stepped inside the small room. Glancing up, the captain grunted, still staring at the map.

"Sir, dragons are heading this way," one squeaked excitedly.

Pleasure flashed in the captain's eyes, "What sort?"

"Timbrejacks, Thunderdrums, Skrills and Changwings, you name 'em!"

The captain got onto the deck, he lifted his finger to touch his mouth: I sign of 'be quiet', "We must get ready to capture as many as we can." The men rushed to grab weapons and get hold of bola launchers. As the dragons soared above the ship, the captain brought his hand up high; he clenched it and a smirk formed on his face. The bola launchers were released capturing dragons left, right and center. Each squealed and began to disperse. Their panicked squawks alerted another presence because soon a shadow appeared out of the clouds; it dived with its head pointed towards the ship.

A low whistle could be heard and before anyone could react the ship was encased with black smoke. A thud sounded on the deck; the captain hurried to grab a weapon and twisted in all directions, waiting for the creature to spring into an attack. Several men yelped as a tail flicked out of the smoke, slowly followed by the sudden snap of rope; dragons burst from the smoke and quickly fled to the safety of the sky. The captain screamed and thrust his body into the centre of the smoke. He whipped around as movement caught his eye. He lifted up the sword in his hand and brought it down on the limb that swayed, teasingly in the air. Everything went quiet, until a wail of agony erupted from the ship; all the men tensed and braced for an angered beast, but all they were met with was a beating of wings and a silhouette emerging and escaping from the ship.

As the fog dispersed, the captain looked around the deck; the wind whipping past him making his hair flare up in all directions. He spotted blood splattered everywhere and as he turned to the sky he saw a lone dragon. Only a shadow from this view, but he could see- as clear as day- a long gash near its tail. The devil wouldn't last long because a 'downed dragon was a dead one.' He turned his attention to the damage made. "Only two dragons escaped, both Thunderdrums."

"Let's continue, I won't stop till I find that dragon and sell it to a reasonable man," he paused for a moment, inhaling deeply before his lips curled up into an insane grin.

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Well, since this is the beginning of a new story, I hope you enjoy. I do apologise for jumping into it with mysteries, but soon it'll make sense. I wonder what that dragon was? You know any dragons that make a whistling sound as well as breath smoke? Please review, follow and favourite for more chapters! Until then see ya folks!

-Draco


	2. This Is Berk

Who would think that we would be at chapter one already? Well I feel I've been here before...

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Chapter 1

This is Berk

The wind whipped around a small isolated island. The waves crashed against the island's sides and their temperature beyond freezing. The trees leaned and creaked at the impact the force pushed onto them. At the front of the island is a lone mountain stretching towards the heavens; below it lay a village. Houses crammed into every spot possible- all wooden and simple. There lay two holes in the island: one in the side of the rock with a building protecting it and the other in the mountain- large doors sheilding it from the harsh weather.

People cheered excitedly, despite the weather they still enjoyed competition on the island. They were all seated on rows in a circle; in front of them was a wooden box with several holes in it. A lid attached to each hole had a painted creature on them and the hole had a net in it. The net held sheep. A man near the stand with long blond (near white) hair hopped around happily, "Five points to Agnes, two for Ulf & Vidar and Brandr lagging with none. Black sheep here we come!" A horn blasted off and everyone cheered ecstatically.

A girl, around eighteen years old, perked up at the buzz of a horn in the distance, "Last lap girl!" A chirp was heard next to her and a beast with scales, claws and wings came next to the young adult.

"Better feed your Deadly Nadder some chicken Agnes or else I'm winning this thing," hollered another young adult, although male.

"My dragon can beat your Monsterous Nightmare any day Brandr and if you haven't noticed I'm winning the points." she scoffed and patted her green Nadder to go faster; it obliged and dived towards a black speck, "the black sheep." she murmered to herself, letting the Nadder pull out its claws to snatch the creature.

WHOOSH! "ARRGG! Ulf, Vidar!" a two headed dragon swooped in and grabbed the sheep before Agnes could touch it. They flew side by side trying to dodge the other's attack. Once the lids were seen and the crowd was heard their fighting increased until the Hideous Zippleback dropped the sheep into its net and the crowd cheered. A calm voice rose above the crowd with such fondness and care that it silenced them at once, "Ulf and Vidar have managed to win this race with twelve points!-" the crowd cheered "-Let us celebrate in the great hall." Everyone agreed and made their way to the crack in the mountain.

A boy of fifteen, black hair, a mop of it covering his left eye, aqua blue eyes steps into the great hall. He dodged the larger people and made his way to a lone table; he set himself down after grabbing a plate of food and a drink. He sits silently contemplating today's events.

A thud from the other side of the table shakes him into reality and he notices he has company. He does not say a word, though does raise an eyebrow in questioning. "Hey Sigurd! My dad's too busy getting drunk and making speeches to talk to me, so I got the others to keep ya company, "A girl with wild, plaited, auburn long hair. Her eyes, sparkled with ferocity and curiosity, were a forest green; freckles lined her cheeks and her smile was crooked. She wore a green tunic with a brown fur vest, moleskin trousers and brown fur boots; above her trousers she wore a leather skirt with spikes poking out the sides.

"Freya dragged us here thinking you were 'lonely'," scoffed a teen similar in age. He had blond hair combed neatly back and a deep purple shade for his eyes, with a pair of glasses hanging loosely on the tip of his nose. His clothes consisted of brown and cream.

"Egil, leave Freya alone, she had good intentions," piped a boy with navy blue hair and a muscular body. His eyes, glinting harmlessly in the candle light, were a light shade of blue. Next to him were two people who looked similar, the only difference was their gender.

"She couldn't stay away!" they both sneered. They both had flame-red curly hair. Their eyes were a muddy green fogged up with bits of grey, burning intensely with mischief.

They all sat around the table in silence, only a candle dimly lighting their faces. Laughter echoed across the hall and the chattering distracted the group from their thoughts. The chief walked over with five other adults in tow. "Dad!" Freya smiled crookedly as the man approached her. A female ,with blonde hair, pouted and kneeled down to Freya's height, "So you scream for Hiccup, but not your mother?" She held her hand close to her chest, mockingly shocked. Hiccup rolled his eyes while a larger man went over to Egil, "Son, I hope you read that book I gave you." Egil seemed to scowl up at the man and sighed, slightly nodding his head. Snotlout hooked his arm around Bjorn as he chatted to him- he didn't seem to notice the boy shiver under his gaze; while Ruffnut and Tuffnut kept rambling on about 'Loki's children' to Hel and Hal. Hiccup seemed to eye the group then state, "You all look tired, you lot should go off to your house. Don't worry your parents won't be long. Oh, and remember to get up early to head to the dragon ring!"

They all walked in silence as soon as they stepped out of the great hall. The wind brushed past their hair, ruffling it on it's way past. Freya decided to walk to Sigurd, "I guess I'll see you tomorrow at the ring?" Sigurd simply nodded as a reply. As they each reached the plaza each one went their ways. Sigurd lingered awhile longer before heading towards the forest. At the edge of the village was a lone house. The ground level had part of its side taken down and inside was a fireplace with different objects laying about. Sigurd was a blacksmith, yet he didn't like going into town. He preferred the space outside of town. He was a creative teen, always loving to draw and create something new. He clambered his way up stairs and stumbled into bed, exhausted. He settled down for the night quickly falling into a deep slumber.

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Alright, let me clear somethings up:

Hiccup and Astrid have two children called Freya and Rolf

Snotlout's son is Bjorn

Egil is the son of Fishlegs

Hel and Hal's father is Tuffnut

Sigurd is a mystery for now!

Freya is like Astrid (Brave, competitive, stubborn)

Bjorn is like Fishlegs (Nervous, kind, helpful)

Egil is like Snotlout (Aggressive, doesn't like Sigurd, never wants to be wrong)

Hel and Hal are like the twins (Though less stupid, destructive and care about each other instead of fighting each other)

Sigurd is like Hiccup (Sarcastic, Creative, Artistic, Leader-like, Stubborn)

I will put these traits into other chapters and the mini series later on, but I didn't want to explain it in the chapter. For more chapters please review, follow and favourite. Until next time see ya!

-Draco


	3. Dragon Island

I have decided to change up the order of the story from last time: instead of having Sigurd there each time his friends meet their dragon, I think Sigurd should not know until going back to Berk; which makes the story shorter and neater!

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Chapter 2:

Dragon Island

The sun sliced through the window into the shack; light shining on a bed tucked up in a corner. Under the blankets a shape moved and a grunt escaped from the lump. Slowly lifting himself above the blankets, Sigurd emerged with a mop of his wild black hair sticking out in all directions; his eyes were fogged up from his night's slumber. He dragged his body out of bed and got ready; he stumbled down stairs and began to prepare his things. He pulled a satchel from under a work station and balanced it on a stool near by. Sigurd slid over to a bookshelf and snatched a few blank books, as well as grabbing a charcoal pencil from a pot on the way. He stuffed them into the satchel and moved onto getting: a jar of Dragon Nip, a blanket, spare clothes and other bits.

He swung a wooden door in the corner of the workshop; light seeping through and brightening the once dark blacksmith's. He grimaced and scrunched his eyes tightly shut, as he stepped out of the building. He walked on a small dirt path, until it became stone and he entered the village; he scurried past many large people and dragons who were crowding around houses. He managed to dodge a Gronckle as it landed with a THUMP!

Sigurd jogged into the dragon training ring; many people were looking into the pit and Hiccup, the current chief, was seated by the front. Young teens were excitedly chattering amongst themselves as Sigurd made his way over to a group containing: Freya, Egil, Bjorn, Hel and Hal. Freya was on the floor with her legs sprawled out; she held a stone and ground it against an axe. The axe had dragon patterns twisting along the hilt and a Nightfury on one of the blades. Her eyes were squinted and she bit her lip, deep in concentration.

Egil leaned on the side of the ring, a book propped up by one hand, while the other was behind his back. Hel and Hal were playing a game where they pulled out different hand gestures and one would knock out the other (rock, paper, scissors). Bjorn was walking in circles, tired eyes fixated on the cobblestone floor. He glanced up and his lips curled into a soft smile; he went to greet Sigurd by patting him on the back and leading him to the group. Egil- not looking away from his book- sneered, "Took you long enough to get here, I thought you'd been carried off!"

"Nah, I'm way too swift to get caught." Sigurd waved off the insult, sarcasm oozing from his lips.

A screech was heard and all mutterings came to a stop; Hiccup petted the Nightfury that look unamused, "Thanks bud! Alright, young Vikings you are gathered here today because it is time for you to train your own dragon and join the elder Hooligans," cheers erupted from the crowd and the teens, "We will take you to Dragon Island on a ship, where you will be dropped off on the island and left there for a week. You must've trained a dragon before you return to Berk, or else you fail!" Hiccup pulled his hand out and stuck his thumb down towards the ground as he finished, a slanted grin plastered to his face.

"That's my dad!" Freya hollared, as everyone was forming out of the ring and towards the docks. Sigurd rolled his eyes and walked silently behind the group.

He boarded the ship and placed himself near the front; sitting down and crossing his legs. Freya strolled up to him and put her arm on his head, leaning on him. She smiled down at him and sighed softly, "I can't believe we're going to get our dragons. It seems like only yesterday that I was playing with Toothless, Stormfly, Sneaky and Sharpshot." The ship drifted out of the docks and floated on towards Dragon Island; dragons at the front beating their wing to pull it in the right direction.

The mutterings of the other teens on the ship, erupted into excited chattering as Dragon Island came into view. The island had a huge mountain with a large hole near to the left; stacks of rock surround the island making it hard for an outsider to drift ashore unscathed. Vegetation had sprouted from cracks in the stone around the mountain; the undergrowth shifted as creatures stalked in the heather.

Sigurd swayed forward as the ship scraped against the stones on the beach of the island. He strained his ears to hear the soft hum of slumbering dragons and the singing of Terrible Terrors. Freya strolled up to where Sigurd leaned on the boat's side and slapped his shoulder- he grimaced.

"Come on!" Bjorn called with Egil by his side; the twins already on the island. Sigurd approached the others and swiftly exited the ship. His eyes snapped towards Hiccup as he began to explain the rules; his eyes were locked on his, but his ears were restricted to his surroundings.

When they were dismissed, Freya told the small group to split up and meet back in a week's time to show off their new dragons. Sigurd wasn't too interested and walked off into the brush. He kept note of good resting spots and hiding places in case of an emergency. He weaved past different plants and trees, until he came upon a clearing. A hill was to the left and the right had a view of the ocean's waves rolling onto the shore below. A ditch was buried slightly by the hill and hollowed out part of it. As Sugrid glanced at the view, he noticed that the sky had streaks of pink, yellow and red swirling into each other. _'judging by the sun's position and the sky's colour then that would mean that it is time to get rest'_ he concluded.

He made his way to the ditch and slid down so he was completely hidden from anyone's sight. He found a comfy spot at the back of the hollowed out hill and dropped his satchel down; he flipped open the lid and dug his hand into it, trying to find the blanket he packed earlier. When he found it, he flung it onto himself and threw his head down on the satchel. He lay there, eyes staring out to the surface world, and watched as the shadows danced and slowly retreated as the sun dipped out of sight. hoots and squawks were the only sounds that echoed through the burrow Sigurd was in and his eyes began to droop at the odd melody that they played. Before he knew it, darkness had consumed him and he drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

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Well, that concludes today's chapter; I do hope you have enjoyed it so far! Also, just as a little game, who wants to guess what dragon each character will be getting. If you get the correct dragon with the correct rider then you get a virtual cookie from yours truly! Please review, follow and favourite for more chapters...

-Draco


	4. Survival Challenge

Alright so we're onto the third chapter already! I can't wait to get this finished and start on the mini-series...

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Chapter 3

Survival Challenge

Sigurd lifted his heavy eye lids and was greeted with the harsh light that pierced through the cracks from the dip. He sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes and combing his hair back. He quickly rolled up his blanket and stuffed it in the satchel and slung it over his shoulder; he crawled out of the ditch and scanned the clearing for danger. Once he confirmed the place to be clear he set off in the direction of the island's heart. The mountain.

He swiped the plants away from his path and trudged forward; he lifted his boot and landed heavily on a twig. A snap echoed through the woods; Sigurd stiffened and waited. The forest quickly quietened. His eyes twitched around him trying to find any threat that may have come to prey on his foolishness. He released a sigh and began walking again. A sudden hiss came from his right and he twisted to see a pair of orange eyes; the beating of wings told Sigurd that a dragon was making itself known to him. It burst out of the brush, claws extended and tail poised to strike, and came barreling towards the young teen. He dropped to the floor and tumbled out of the way- a slice of hair flew off as the claws snipped past him. The dragon landed and revealed itself in the sunlight. A mint green Deadly Nadder.

Sigurd flipped the lid of his satchel open and fished the bottle of Dragon Nip. The dragon charged, dipping its head and extending its wings. Sigurd flung his satchel to the ground and tried to jump to the side,though the dragon's horns clipped his shoulder and sliced through his clothing. Blood flowed out of the wound and Sigurd quickly grabbed his shoulder, wincing at the pain. He bared his teeth and ripped part of his tunic and quickly wrapped it around the cut. The Nadder's nostrils flared, releasing a puff of smoke and scrapped the ground. It charged again. Sigurd dived to reach the discarded bottle and popped the lid open. He emptied the content and threw it at the attacker. The Nadder's pupils grew in size and the spikes on its tail recoiled in submission. It purred in pleasure and began to nuzzle the grass that had fallen to the ground. Sigurd watched amused and reached to the back of his neck to scratch, awkwardly. He chuckled nervously and silently side-stepped off the scene; he picked up his satchel and scampered away from the mountain. _'Too much excitement for one day,'_ he thought, shrugging his shoulder as he went on his way.

The day had begun exciting, but after that it got slightly tiring. As soon as it hit midday, Sigurd was starting to get hungry and his injured shoulder was beginning to bother him. The sun's rays fell directly on him- as there was no clouds in sight. His breath came out in short pants and a bead of sweat collected along his forehead. He staggered around and his head began to spin; his eyes watered and the pain in his shoulder was beginning to numb. Not good. He dipped in and out of conscious, but luckily didn't fall. He barely noticed the churned up root and caught his foot on it. The root sent him toppling off a ledge. As soon as gravity had done its work, he finally blacked out in a large crater in the ground. More specific? A cove.

His head throbbed and as he tried to adjust his position, his entire body protested and ached. He groggily lifted his eye lids and looked around. He had fallen in a cove and was trapped. No way out. Sigurd groaned in annoyance, _'I hate being weak like this! It's the heat this time though,'_ he thought to himself. A drop of liquid fell onto Sigurd's nose; He stared up at the sky and noticed that clouds had now gathered. He dragged his body to a cave near to where he fell. When he lay himself down at the edge, the rain began to softly patter on the ground outside. A sharp stab of pain came from his shoulder and he decided to check his wound- he had to deal with it quickly, he had to make sure that it wasn't infected. Blood soaked the piece of rag tied around it; he slid it down slightly and checked. A sigh of relief escaped his lips as he found a thin layer of blood crusting around the slit. He kept the bandage on just to make sure he didn't catch it on anything and lay his satchel down beside a rock. He didn't realise how tired he was until a flow of exhaustion piled onto him. He glanced outside, to the sky, and concluded that he would stay up a bit longer- since the time seemed to be early noon.

He sat there, slumped to the side of the cave entrance and closed his eyes; concentrating on the raindrops that splattered to the ground and seemed to echo in his ears. His nose twitched as he heard a low rumble come from just below him; he wrenched an eye open to glimpse at his stomach. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't eaten since yesterday morning. Though he couldn't exactly get out of this cove for two reasons: there didn't seem to be a way out- as all the sides were smooth from water rushing over it- and it was raining making the sides of the cove slippery. His eyes darted around to try to distract himself. His eyes landed on a pool of crimson liquid; they widened and his hair on the back of his neck pricked up in fear.

Blood.

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I'm so mean leaving it at a cliff hanger ain't I? Oh well, hopefully that gets ya'll to be excited for next week's chapter. Right? Good!

Sorry, to me this feels way too short and I think I made it a little fast pace for when he fell into the cove. If the message wasn't clear: he was wounded so the heat from the sun made him faint. I wonder who's blood that belongs to? To find out please follow, favourite and review. Want to guess? Go for it I would love to hear what you think it might be!

-Draco


	5. Bonded Souls

We finally get to a more exciting part of this tale and we're only on the fourth chapter!

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Chapter 4

Bonded Souls

Sigurd's eyes widened as they landed on a pool of crimson liquid. His breath hitched in his throat and an odd gagging sensation filled his mouth. He whipped his hand to his mouth to stop himself; his body began shaking violently as he saw the substance flow around the cave. Sigurd instantly went on alert, snapping his fear-filled eyes around the cave: trying to spot the owner of the blood. A crackle of thunder was heard outside, shortly followed by a flash of electric. The lightning didn't light the cave only Sigurd's fear stricken features. His hands flung behind him as he tried to scurry away from whatever was bleeding.

A hiss erupted from within the cave- deep within where the light didn't touch the cold stone. Two crystal-like eyes snapped open and glared at the small, gangly teenager. Suddenly, a cold tense atmosphere landed in the air. Sigurd found himself holding his breath. The creature snorted and rose from- what Sigurd presumed to be- the floor of the cave. A scraping sound emitted from the floor. Claws; the creature had claws. Sigurd gulped, harshly. As the creature approached, it seemed that the shadows of the cave began to dance around the creature: covering it from Sigurd's view. Only allowing the two fierce eyes to pierce through the fog and to his soul. Another flash of lightning illuminated the creature to reveal a long, slender dragon.

The dragon sprang and landed heavily on Sigurd, pinning him to the ground. Its tail lashed upwards and blood splattered onto Sigurd's face. Now that he could see the dragon properly, he could identify it. But he didn't recognise the dragon's species. It had a long, slender body with large wings spread out beside it. The inside of the wings were a dark purplish colour with silver star-like shapes: to help it fly undetected in the night. Its face held human-like eyes which were a bright crystal blue, though now were slitted. It had ears that were large and slightly oval shaped, until it reached the tips ; which were pointed. The dragon's mouth was canine shaped with large, pearly white fangs. Along its back- the end of the neck to the beginning of the hind legs- was a tuft of neon green fur and its tail tip also held the same colour tuft of fur. The scales of the beast was a dark shade of grey. Sigurd spotted three oval-like patterns- coloured a darker grey, near black, in a formation which held a large oval at the top and two smaller ones underneath it- located on the tops of the legs, beginning of the tail and ears. The dragon seemed taller than a Deadly Nadder, though smaller than a Stormcutter: two and a-half Nightfuries stacked on top of each other.

Sigurd jumped slightly as he heard a growl from the dragon; he had gotten lost in observing the dragon that he had forgotten that it was going to kill him. He held his shaking hands out as a last defence. He scrunched his eyes closed so he couldn't see the beast crush his fingers as it went to feast on him. Sweat poured from his face and his breath was shallow and quick. The rain outside still pounded down, but was muffled by the intense atmosphere in the cave. It felt like an eternity before anything happened; Sigurd flinched when the dragon breathed against his bandaged shoulder. A coo of sympathy escaped the dragon's muzzle and Sigurd wrenched his eyes to gaze at the creature: its eyes now oval-like and was sat beside him, nuzzling his shoulder. Sigurd raised an eyebrow, but released a shaky sigh. He relaxed and seemed to melt into the stone. The dragon cocked its head to the side: questioning as to what Sigurd was doing. He shifted into a more comfortable position against the cave's side wall. The dragon followed suit. A low rumble echoed into the cave as the storm continued to rage on.

A hiss erupted from the throat of the dragon; it flinched awkwardly to the side and whined as its tail curled into itself. Curious, Sigurd leaned over to gaze at the dragon's tail. A long gash was etched into the dragon's skin. A thick layer of puss crusted the edge and some was oozing out of the sides a long with a large amount of blood. Sigurd veered his eyes away and glanced outside. Still raining. He slowly approached the dragon and gently wrapped his arms around its neck. He ushered it towards the cave entrance and pulled its tail so it was no longer sheltered. The dragon flinched as water seeped into the gash. Sigurd made calming hushing sounds and ripped the other sleeve off and began to rub it against the wound. The dragon yowled and whined as the cloth was scraped against its scales. It bared its teeth and tried not to whine, though a few whimpers escaped.

Sigurd patted the dragon's side, "It's OK, good boy you're doing good!" he tried to calm the dragon down, even though he had begun to thrash its tail and try to wither away. Sigurd checked to see if it was infected any more and nodded in satisfaction as there was a clear red substance flowing out of the gash. He went to where he had discarded his satchel and brought out his blanket. He ripped a stripe of its material and bandaged the dragon's wound with it. The dragon's muscles visibly relaxed and twisted around to inspect the bandage; he crooned, sticking his tongue out. He slowly approached Sigurd, tongue lolled and a dragon-like smirk plastered to his face.

Sigurd sat on the floor with a unamused frown on his face. The dragon had curled itself around him and was now licking one side of his face. He had tried to fight off the dragon that had pinned him to the ground and now he was mumbling unintelligible words. The dragon seemed happy, though. "I guess I'll make you my dragon then?" Sigurd wondered out loud. The dragon hummed in response.

"We'll need to name you as well." he muttered, resting his head on his chin.

"I was thinking ShadowHeart as your name and your species as a Nightwing, What'd you think?" he glanced up at the newly dubbed ShadowHeart, who rumbled and began to lower his body to the cave floor. ShadowHeart curled his tail and wings around Sigurd and his breathing evened out; puffs of smoke escaped his nostrils. Sigurd leaned into the dragon's side, which produced waves of heat. They soon fell into a deep slumber, both bandaged and curled around each other.

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This was the most exciting part of the story that I wrote, because this was planned in so many different ways that this one felt it fitted into the story like a puzzle piece. What do you think? Would you want any part of it to be any different? Please Review, follow and favourite for more chapters!

-Draco


	6. Flying Lessons Or Dying Lessons?

We're on chapter five already and I want to try and put some humour into the story; this will also be the last chapter on Dragon Island. I may have messed with time, so let's just say Sigurd has been on the island for a week and this is the last day. OK? Good!

Oh, and I am trying to make the chapter titles creative; so I was wondering if I was doing a good job or not. If you could review some suggestions, then I'd love to hear 'em! If you haven't noticed,as well, I have added a few little things from the first movie. Just goes to show how similar the future riders are to the original gang...

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Chapter 5

Flying Lessons Or Dying Lessons?

When Sigurd woke up the next morning, he noticed that he was slumped on the stone floor of the cave with no dragon in sight. Just a dream or is Sigurd going crazy (Comment your answer!)? He lifted himself off the floor and stumbled to the cave's entrance. The rain had stopped and the leftover dew clung to the vines, that hung from the faces of the cove. The trees shielded the cove from the sun from hitting the ground. Sigurd wandered around searching for ShadowHeart. He found the dragon flopped on a rock, where the sun pierced through the trees, relaxing. A frown slipped on Sigurd's face as he saw the dragon's tongue lolled out, "great my dragon is lazy!" he huffed in frustration. ShadowHeart snorted at his human's reaction.

Sigurd noticed that yesterday's rain had made a pool of water that gathered at the back of the cove. He walked over to it and bent down. He pulled off the cloth from his shoulder, showing a faded scar. He flung the cloth in the water and began to clean it. ShadowHeart flipped himself onto his paws and went to the water's edge. His lips curled into a dragon-like smirk as he whipped his tail to hit the back of Sigurd. His human was flung off balance and fell into the water soon followed by a high pitched yelp. A drgonic laugh erupted from the surface: Sigurd found ShadowHeart fallen on the floor choking himself by laughter. Sigurd splashed some water- creating a wave- and flooded ShadowHeart, who looked unamused as water dripped from his ears.

After they had dried themselves off, Sigurd had a hand on his chin while he was deep in thought. His eyes kept twitching toward ShadowHeart and the edges of the cove. He muttered to himself, while ShadowHeart stared at him questioningly. Sigurd sprung to his feet- startling the dragon beside him- and went to pick up his satchel. He wondered back to ShadowHeart and began to climb onto the dragon's back. ShadowHeart curled his neck, so his head boosted his human onto him. Sigurd clenched his hands around the tuft on his dragon's back. ShadowHeart opened his wings and began to push up and down with them.

Slowly lifting off the ground, Sigurd adjusted his position, so his head was pushed against the scales. "We need to get used to flying together before we try to get back to Berk," Sigurd answered the unheard question coming from his dragon. ShadowHeart kept wobbling while in the air; he pace was slow and he wasn't flapping his wings, only gliding. Sigurd decided to check on the wound that the dragon had on his tail. He saw the material still there, but the tail was slightly limb: hanging down from the rest of the body. A frown slipped onto his face. He could tell that if ShadowHeart tried to position the tail to fly properly and smoothly then he would be in a massive amount of pain. A gust of wind sweeped past, knocking the Nightwing's wings of balance; he shook violently and flung his tail into the air-above his head. He hissed in pain and flipped over; not expecting the turn, Sigurd was dragged off of his dragon's back and began to tumble in the air.

Panic instantly filled Sigurd's mind as he broke away from ShadowHeart; his dragon was barreling out of control and he could hear shrieks of fear coming from the Nightwing. Sigurd's head was racing for a way to help his dragon to steady out. His eyes widened and he flew-more like free fall- next to the dragon and began ushering comforting words, while grabbing hold of one wing and pulled his weight onto it. As ShadowHeart calmed he noticed that he had levelled out and was soaring close to the clouds. Sigurd still clung to the wing, but was scurrying along it to get to the dragon's back; He flipped onto the back and managed to pull the neon-green tuft, to steer the dragon into a steep turn: towards the ground. As they landed, Sigurd was flung from his dragon and onto the hard dirt of the ground. He breathed a sigh of relief and twisted onto his back, so his eyes gazed up at the cloud filled sky. ShadowHeart was panting near by and inspecting the gash- he had torn through the bandage. He noticed that small amounts of blood was seeping through the, now nearly healed, cut. The dragon leaned toward the wound and stuck its tongue out of his mouth. The tongue glided across the gash and as soon as he lifted it, the wound was completely healed. No scar left behind. Sigurd, who was observing the dragon, stared wide eyed and had his jaw slightly ajar. Well, how would you react if you just saw your dragon heal itself with its saliva?

The Nightwing lifted his head, so his eyes met the same aqua blue ones; he tilted his head to ask a question and pointed- with his muzzle- towards his back again. _'Want to try again?'_ was the message that came to mind. Sigurd leaped to his feet and mounted his dragon. He clung to the tuft harder this time. He heard the familiar beat of wings and soon found himself seeing the clouds and world below stretched out. The wing gently brushed past his face as ShadowHeart sped his pace. Sigurd slowly reached above him, so his hand glided across the clouds; they parted and a trail of fluff was left behind. The Nightwing steered into a dive and headed back to the ground, though he pulled up as soon as they reached the trees. He beat his wings and sped across the island. Sigurd's sight caught a ship that was sailing across the sea; he patted ShadowHeart's back and the dragon swirled upwards into the clouds. When they burst through, Sigurd saw the sky was slightly pink-with yellow swirling into it- and on the other side, the sky grew darker with stars barely glistening in the distance. They glided under the stars and saw the Northern Lights dance around them. Their next stop: Berk.

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I feel I could've done more to this, but I didn't have anything that would make it better. So, what do you think so far? Please review, follow and favourite for more chapters!

-Draco


	7. A Ceremony To Remember

We're finally onto someone else's point of view:... Freya's! Of course since she's got a different personality then she's gonna think differently to Sigurd. This is set when the week has past and they're at Berk doing the ceremony.

Just a random bit of info for you guys, I've started writing some other planned stories called 'Throne Of Thorns' and 'Guardianship'. They won't be seen for a while, but I have a lot of fanfics I want to get posted. Also, the mini series 'Tales Of Dragons And Riders'- coming right after 'The Night's Heart' finishes- will not be updated on a set day, but updated when I feel inspired. That's just a heads up if you're interested!

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Chapter 6  
A Ceremony To Remember

The ship landed at the dock of Berk; Freya was standing at the back of the ship. A frown was plastered to her face as worry overtook her usually cheery attitude. The twins wandered up to her; The female red-head poked her shoulder, "Boat's landed, everyone's getting ready." She said flatly. Freya glanced at her and softened her expression, "Sorry I was just worried, because Sigurd hasn't gotten on the ship at all and I haven't seen him," she muttered under her breath. Hel and Hal nodded in understanding: they always worried for their friends, unlike their father and aunt. The three went and got off the ship. They were not allowed to see their dragons or show anyone else them, because they needed to wait for the ceremony to start.

As the group were at the plaza, waiting for the afternoon ceremony, Freya found Bjorn frantically combing his hair back. He was pacing around, worry evident in his eyes. The teen kept muttering to himself and Freya had to hold him down to calm the boy. "I haven't seen Sigurd since last week and I'm worried!" he shrieked, his eyes flickering about watching everyone's movements.

"He's probably flying in on his dragon, wanting to make an impressive entrance," Freya tried to comfort, yet her own words didn't ease herself. The sun was already setting the next time Freya checked and she still couldn't find Sigurd; she was uncertain if he would even show up for the ceremony! Thoughts circled around her head, drowning out any rational thinking: _'what if he's trapped or a dragon as injured him?'_

People began to gather around a torch lit arena; there chattering didn't cease as they sat down around the edge. Young teenagers filed in through a large door; at the top were six seats which held: Hiccup the chief, Astrid the chief's wife (Parents to Freya), Fishlegs the brains (Father to Egil), Snotlout the strength (Bjorn's dad), Ruffnut and Tuffnut the destructive (Tuffnut being Hel and Hal's parent). In the ring, all around the walls were large wooden doors; squeaks, squawks, rumbles and roars echoed around everyone, though they were not distressed or frightened only surprised and annoyed. Hiccup stood up and walked to the edge, he addressed the crowd calm and lovingly. "Today we have before us the next generation of dragon riders, today they become one of us-" the crowd erupted into cheers. "No one is more happy or proud as a chief watches his children of the village step into a new role of responsibly and become the new dragon riders of this time!" The man threw his hands up, both balled up into fists, in the air and a smile split from ear to ear. His Nightfury shot a blazing blue fireball into the air. It exploded and the embers scattered creating a almost firework-like effect. Freya beamed as her father's speech freed her of her negative thoughts; today was supposed to be a day to celebrate the coming of age!

Hiccup called every teen's name one at a time; since there were so many, one half was said first and then the next lot would be after the feast. It seemed that Freya's group were going to be in the next lot, since everyone was braking away and heading to the Great hall. The second half weren't allowed to leave, nor pick up their dragons, so they waited. Bjorn began to worry again, as he paced around the ring muttering to himself. Egil stomped towards him and yanked his arm, so the Jorgenson's ear was close to the Ingerman's mouth. "Shut the hell up!" he hissed, "for thor's sake stop you're worrying, your own father is still watching you!" Egil pointed his finger up to where Snotlout was seated, a scowl firmly planted on his brow and lips. Bjorn's posture completely collapsed at the mention of his father and he squirmed in discomfort, "He's probably em-embarrassed that I'm worried about s-Sigurd." he stammered as he swallowed a lump that forced its way upwards. Egil huffed and rolled his eyes, irritated.

Freya glanced between the two males and stepped towards them, "I'm sure Sigurd will be here by the second half!" she added more enthusiastic then she actually felt.

The clouds had drifted away and now the sky was clear to gaze at; one side being lit up by the sun's last rays and the other half being darkened, the glitter of stars flickering across the sky. The wind whipped past Sigurd, stroking his hair back violently. His eyes were squinted and he leaned against the warm scales of the Nightwing. A low croon vibrated from the dragon's throat to the lower neck, where Sigurd was perched: between the dragon's wings and on top of the neon green tuft. The dragon's wings lifted up and down sifting through the air. Sigurd could feel his stomach eating away at itself and wondered when he'd get to Berk. He took account for the lack of sea stacks and the small speck of an island behind him, that he was half way back to home. The teen's mind reeled back to his younger days: when he watched Hiccup race away to a last minute meeting with the Bog Burglars. He had noticed that Hiccup would shift the position of Toothless' tail so that his dragon could raise upwards and then dropped low to the sea's waves. He concluded- now that he was older and wiser- that Hiccup was using that to pick up speed faster. Snapping back to reality, the boy tugged on the dragon's back tuft.

The dragon arced upwards and raised higher into the air; once the pair had balanced out in the sky, Sigurd pushed the fur back down. The Nightwing followed the pressure and tucked his wings close to his body. The dragon dipped its head towards the rolling waves and let gravity do the rest. He spread his wings once the waves were close enough and sharply levelled out. ShadowHeart continued to pound his wings, spraying water droplets as he went. The waves peeled away from each other and left a path where the dragon rocketed past. Within minutes, Sigurd could identify the large rock statues that lined the island's boarders. He grasped the fur again and pulled his dragon higher so Sigurd could watch the village below. He managed to land the dragon on the cliff face above the training ring- luckily having a stealth built dragon. He could spot everyone gathering around the metal oval the covered the dip in the stone; Hiccup's voice rang in both boy and dragon's ears, "Freya Haddock and her dragon, a Stormcutter, Skychaser!" the sound of praise and awe echoed up to the shadowed duo.

"Egil Ingerman and his dragon, a hobblegrunt, Venus!"

"Bjorn Jorgenson and his dragon, a Deathsong, Firefly!"

"Hel, Hal Thornston and their dragon, a Seashocker, Shock and Wave!"

"And the last for this year-" Before Hiccup could finish, Sigurd saw the opportunity to make a dramatic entrance and urged his dragon to breath smoke around the arena. With shouts of shock and protest, Sigurd managed to slither his Nightwing into the center of the ring without anyone noticing. Hopping off his dragon and signalling for his friend to rid the area of smoke, Sigurd lowered his head and bowed when the smoke cleared. Silence met his ears and a smirk danced on his face; he shot up and looked right into Hiccup's awe-struck and shocked eyess. "I, Sigurd, introduce to you a new dragon species-" he paused to add affect. "-The Nightwing and my partner, ShadowHeart!"

The dragon in question puffed his chest out and his eyes sparkled with smugness.

"A Nightwing?"

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Cliff hanger! Wow, I feel really proud of the end there-could use more though. This is my longest chapter yet, and yet the most boring to me. We did get to reveal the new gang's family and their dragons-I know unique choice, but will be said why they chose these breeds of dragons in the mini series- but still a mystery for our protagonist! I am sneaky though, anyway please review, follow and favourite for more chapters!

-Draco


	8. Killer Training

This chapter will be the death of me! We're still not onto the action part of the story and yet we're on chapter 7! Anyway, hopefully this chapter gives you some insight of what my own dragon, the Nightwing, is and all...

I'd just like to point out that the next five chapters will be similar to the training montage from the movie. This entire fic is supposed to be around how different- yet alike- the next generation is like to the first.

I also realised that I released the sixth chapter on a Saturday, curse my sleepy mind for thinking it was Sunday! So I apologise for any confusion coursed by my mind... Please continue reading, think nothing of the mistake last week.

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Chapter 7:  
Killer Training

"A Nightwing?"

The silence seemed to last an eternity before everyone erupted into excited chaos. Poor ShadowHeart. The village gathered around the pair, examining the new dragon before them. Hiccup managed to push everyone back to their seats- with the help of his friends' companions- and speak to Sigurd. "Where have you been? You didn't board the ship," he exclaimed, twitching his eye to the dragon by Sigurd's side.

"You could say I went on a late evening flight with my dragon here and lost track of time." Sarcasm dripped off of Sigurd's tongue as a reply. Hiccup raised an eyebrow, questioningly.

"So what did you name... Him?" The chief asked.

"ShadowHeart, as I said before!" Sigurd snapped, quietly.

Hiccup walked to the back of the ring and cleared his throat; silencing all previous mutterings. "Since everyone has their dragon, I think it's time everyone got back home." As he said that, ShadowHeart warbled in agreement and strided out of the ring. Sigurd protested as the dragon left him behind. Egil strolled up to the unamused teen and sneered into his ear, "I see your dragon is obedient."

Frowning, Sigurd trudged after the Nightwing. He called back sarcastically, "I hardly noticed!" and disappeared from view. Egil huffed and beckoned his dragon to his side; he hopped on the Hobblegrunt and flew out. The rest followed suit shortly after.

Sigurd found his dragon lumbering around, confused. He directed the Nightwing to his home and took the lead. When they arrived, the dragon shuffled its snout along the floor; he knocked things over and examined the many tools strewn about. Sigurd Climbed upstairs and crawled into bed, his dragon following closely after. The Nightwing walked in circles- Sigurd watching, with his eyes twisting at each movement- and plopped his body on the spare space in the corner of the room. The teen listened for the soft snores that companied the rise and fall of the dragon's chest. The boy also joined his dragon in sleep.

The next morning, the new dragon riders had made their way to the training ring to start learning the ways of their partners. Astrid stood at the front of the class, her hands on her hips and a slightly slanted position; she had set up around them barrels that had different contents. "Today you're going to learn what your dragon is afraid of or its weaknesses." She stated plainly, "Around you are barrels with different items in them. Go round and find what your dragon is afraid of, each barrel will be unique to any dragon species."

"We already know dragons don't like eels and are allergic to the same plant that reptiles are too, so why do we need to do this exercise? Why can't we start flying are dragons?" Hal blurted out as he looked over to the other twin, who nodded in return.

"Mutton heads, you need to know all your dragon's weaknesses so you can avoid them in battle or use them to your advantage against opposing sides!" Egil snapped, raising his fist in anger. Astrid nodded in approval, "Egil is right. This is helpful for taking down enemy dragons without using violence, but also to be aware of your dragon's weaknesses."

Sigurd wandered up to one barrel and popped the lid off, inside were multiple different coloured rocks; ShadowHeart cocked his head and cooed, questioningly. "If your dragon does not react to it negatively, move on!" Astrid's voice rose from the corner of the ring. Sigurd moved to the next. The contents inside varied: inside one were flowers, one held leather, a barrel carried metal and many more. As Sigurd was moving on to the next, ShadowHeart stiffened; his eyes became slits and his ears were flattened against his head. A growl carried its way up his throat. Sigurd, hearing the growl, turned to his dragon. The fur along the Nightwing's back increased in size and flared in different directions. Unlike a cat bristling its fur, this was the fur actually growing. The tuft had extended to the height of its head and its tail lashed out against the ground. The teen spotted the barrel responsible for his dragon's outburst and inspected it.

He rolled off the lid and peeked inside; there lay quartered-rosette blood roses. Sigurd's eyes widened at the discovery and held up the flower. ShadowHeart snorted and scraped at the ground with his claws; smoke bellowing out of the Nightwing's snout. "It would seem that ShadowHeart gets aggressive and unresponsive when these type of flowers are around," concluded Egil, who stepped a few feet away from the dragon.

"That could be both useful and dangerous!" piped up Freya, her eyes sparkled with excitement as she saw the enraged dragon.

"It could get someone killed."

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That finishes up Astrid's lesson. I don't know why, but all my least favourite chapters are the longest. Anyway what do you think so far? I can see some of you over thinking that last be there... Anyway, please review, follow and favourite for more chapters!

-Draco


	9. The Nightwing Pamphlet

I apologise for not updating last week, though life can get in the way. My brother was going to an university open day and I decided to tag along, to take advantage and look at some of the courses. We stayed a little longer than planned and didn't get back till ten O'clock at night, thus why I didn't update. I understand that I could have updated on Monday, but I was still trying to write other chapters and needed more time. Again I apologise for the delay and I hope you enjoy this week's chapter!

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Chapter 8:

The Nightwing Pamphlet

"I'm still curious on how you met ShadowHeart and where he came from. It doesn't add up that a new dragon- that my dad hasn't found in all his years- would just show up on Dragon Island!" Freya rambled as she and Sigurd made their way to the Great Hall; both of their dragons in tow. The two picked up what food they wanted and sat down at an empty table in the corner of the hall. Hel and Hal spotted the two and joined them, asking more questions about Sigurd's Nightwing. "I want to know more about that shadow smoke it used yesterday, that was cool!" The Nightwing's rider rolled his eyes, a groan escaping his lips.

"Freya has a point, it's not everyday that a new dragon just pops up out of nowhere. There's got to be a reason." Bjorn walked up to the table, his helmet was shining in the candle light. His Deathsong went to join the other dragons. "Did anyone find out who'd be teaching us today?" the male twin asked, looking around the table. All heads swayed to signal 'no'.

"I, in fact, know that my dad will be teaching about the Book of Dragons," Egil stated as his Hobblegrunt sniffed the contents of the table. He, softly, batted the dragon to the side and took a seat at the table. Freya signalled- with a swift motion of her hand- for him to continue. He scowled bitterly, but obliged anyway:

"My dad will want us to study everything that has been documented in the book."

"One problem, what will Sigurd do about ShadowHeart?" Bjorn quipped in, curiously. Egil glared at the Jorgenson, "I was getting to that part! Sigurd needs to write all the information he finds in an empty book, basically he needs to find the information by observing his dragon." Egil finished by folding his arms and glaring expectantly at the raven haired boy.

The teen ignored the glare, finishing his meal and getting up to leave. He beckoned his dragon and left the hall quickly. "Not much of a talker, huh?" the male Thornston questioned, while Egil snorted- annoyed by the boy's lack of communication. Sigurd rummaged through his house, until he landed upon a stack of blank books; he grabbed a charcoal pencil and hurried to the training ring once more. When he entered, he saw Fishlegs with a pile of books stacked around him; all on different dragon species. Everyone else were seated in odd spots around the ring; each having a book about their dragon breed's. The huge, bulking man noticed Sigurd approaching; he simply nodded, aware of his presence. A while later, Sigurd listened as the others called out each of their dragon's strengths.

"Attack six, speed eight, armour four, shot limit eight and venom zero." Freya called.

"Attack eighteen, speed four, armour sixteen, firepower eighteen, shot limit thirteen, venom zero, jaw strength seven and stealth five." Egil recalled.

"Attack eighteen, speed-er sixteen, armour twenty something, firepower seven-I think, shot limit twelve, venom fourteen, jaw strength eight and stealth ten." Hel and Hal threw at each other.

"Attack six-sixteen, speed nine-seventeen, armour sixteen, firepower thirteen, shot limit si-eight, venom zero, jaw strength ten and stealth zero." Bjorn muttered. Fishlegs nodded in approval.

Sigurd set up around twenty targets; ShadowHeart managed to shoot all of them down. "Shot limit twenty," he jotted into the note book. Sigurd guessed the stealth to be somewhere around sixteen-eighteen, since the dragon is made to be stealthy during the night. Sigurd used a tree to check his dragon's jaw strength. What was noted was: jaw strength ten. The Nightwing's armour came to about seventeen and firepower unknown; Sigurd noticed that ShadowHeart can use venom in his attacks and wrote about twelve being the number to use. Speed, he figured being about sixteen. He continued to write things about: Wing span, weight, blood colour and general deadliness.

Egil walked up to the teen and inspected the writing, curiously; he was wondering how strong the Nightwing really was. He pushed his glasses back onto his nose and seemed to suck in a deep breath, "That dragon is really something," he breathed out again. Sigurd met Egil's eyes and asked a question that had come to mind not moments ago, "What are we doing tomorrow?"

"A lesson about combat with Bjorn's dad, Snotlout..."

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This one is a lot shorter than the rest, because I wanted it to be slightly different from the rest and I couldn't come up with any other way to make it longer. Anyway, please review, follow and favourite for more chapters!

-Draco


	10. Dual Wielder

Not much to say here, but I guess: Here's the next chapter! Is that right? Yeah, I think it's right...

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Chapter 9:

Dual Wielder

The teens were lined up along the arena wall; their dragons on the other side. Snotlout was in front of them, pacing from side to side as he rambled. Sigurd sighed heavily and rolled his eyes as the man passed him. He glanced over to his friends to see how they were holding and spotted Bjorn shivering. He kept a firm gaze on him to see what was wrong; Bjorn's eyes were locked fearfully on Snotlout as he gulped in all the information that was thrown at the poor teen. Sigurd knew that Bjorn was afraid of his father because he thought of himself as a disgrace. You see, Bjorn is the kind and caring type; he doesn't like to be pushed to be better than others, especially his friends. Sigurd also knew that Bjorn respected him because he thought Sigurd could stand up to anyone and be right. While Sigurd thought the opposite. Sigurd found it quite sad to know that Snotlout was willing to push his son to be like him, that he wouldn't care that his own son is scared of him. Whenever Snotlout is near the teen, he starts to break down and what's worse is that Snotlout wants the boy to do everything he did. The teen had no say in his life at the moment, which angered Sigurd.

Snotlout was in charge of teaching the teens how to fight and use self-defence when their dragons weren't able to assist them. To put it shortly, it was combat training. However stupid the man was, he did know how to fight. So, he was teaching them. "The first step in learning how to fight is picking your weapon. It varies on the person and their 'fighting style'. For example I use the hammer." He lifted his weapon into the air. Everyone stared at it, silently praying not to get on the receiving end of the hammer. "Now, I have prepared a barrel full of different weapons. I want you to choose which one you think is best suited to you-" he paused to let everyone take in the information, "and then your going to take on me." He smugly pointed his thumb towards himself.

One at a time the teen's picked out a weapon, but not from the barrel. Freya had her axe strapped to her back, while Bjorn was given a hammer by his father. Egil had no weapon, so chose to take a spire from the barrel. Hel and Hal had matching swords- probably from their father and aunt. Sigurd had made himself two double bladed swords. He had two straps around him, making a 'X' form on his chest and both swords were sheathed in the hilts on his back. "Now, who's gonna go first?" Snotlout sneered. The teens eyed each other, seeing who had the guts to face Snotlout. Determination filled Egil's features as he pushed his glasses to perch on his nose; he stepped forward, crouching his knees and letting the spire fall on its side as he had the back of it gently brush against his back.

Snotlout got into a fighting stance and a smirk stretched against his face, "the challenger always makes the first move." He taunted. Egil's eyebrows furrowed and he let out a battle cry as he sprang towards the older man. Snotlout simply dodged the attack and swung his hammer into the teen's back. Egil went flying into the wall. "Who's next?" The twins glanced at each other and bumped fists, as they raised their swords and sprinted in opposite directions to their opponent. Snotlout rushed to the male twin on his left and as the sword was coming down on him, he ducked and knocked the teen over by aiming his hammer at the boy's legs. Then, as the sister came rushing towards him, he threw his hammer to the side. The female twin looked bewildered as the weapon clattered on the ground. For her brief moment of distraction, the man lowered his head and snorted as he rammed into the girl's stomach with his helmet; the teen got the wind knocked out of her as she fell to the ground.

Freya twirled her axe between her fingers, as she stepped in front of Snotlout. His smirk faltered for only a moment before it was replaced with cracking grin. As Freya got into her fighting stance, Egil and the twins limped towards the edge; while Bjorn and Sigurd watching the intense staring war. A heartbeat later Freya ran, not to her opponent, but the other way. Snotlout looked taken aback as Freya suddenly jumped off the wall and propelled herself, axe raised, towards her teacher. The man quickly stumbled out of the way as the axe crashed to the floor. The Haddock twisted around and swung her axe close to the man's face. The Jorrgenson flung his hammer to Freya, knocking her weapon and sending her tumbling to floor. "Nice try," he breathed. The young teen picked herself up and scowled at the man, "that axe was made by my father, next time be careful what you whack!" she hissed and turned to leave.

Bjorn lifted his hammer and walked to his father's line of sight. He inhaled and exhaled slowly as he fiddled to get a good grip on the handle. Snotlout raised an eyebrow, while lifting his weapon to rest on his shoulder. Bjorn furrowed his eyebrows and locked his gaze on his target. Crouching, he got ready to take off. Springing into action, Bjorn jumped and glided- more like fell- towards his prey. He smashed his hammer on his father's foot; a hiss escaped the older man's throat. A smile slipped onto the son's face as he brought the weapon up and swung. Snotlout grapped the hilt and flung it to the side- the boy still attached.

Sigurd helped the bundle of mess to stand, "you held on quite well." His praise brought a smile to the teen. "Beat my dad for me?" a nod was the only response given. Sigurd reached behind him and unsheathed one sword, he gripped the hilt with his hands as his eyes scanned his opponent. Instead of running in, the boy taunted his teacher to make the first move. Of course, he obliged and charged in cockily. Sigurd dodged to the side and stabbed the butt of his hilt into his mentor's back, sending him toppling over. Frustrated, Snotlout got up and rushed towards the boy; he swung his hammer around wildly. Sigurd kept dodging and blocked the hammer. Stuck, he unsheathed his second sword and flipped it so the blade was behind him. He pushed the sword so it graced the side of Snotlout's face and he stumbled back clutching the bleeding wound. Sigurd took the chance to weave around the man and cross his swords- in an 'X' formation- over his teacher's throat. Snotlout's breath hitched in his throat as the blade glinted in the sunlight. The teen relaxed and dropped his swords, so they feel loosely to his side. He then sheathed them as Snotlout tried to recompose himself.

"That's it for today's lesson, Sigurd wins."

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I'm glad I thought of this, because we haven't had a lot of action for a while. It did get a little quick at the end because I didn't want this chapter to be very long. What do you think so far and what do you hope to see in future chapters? Anyway, please review, follow and favourite for more chapters.

-Draco


	11. Smoke Bombs

I apologise for my inconsistant uploading schedule, but- as always- I have an excuse: I have been filled with homework from school and have needed to study on my artwork. Uploads for this story will not longer be weekly since I've caught up with all the chapters. I've tried to finish it before all the chapters finished were uploaded. but that in itself was a challange. I will be taking my time on finishing each chapter to their full potential, so please try to bare with me. Don't worry, the story is not dead I just need more time to finish it. I will make sure to not post another story until all chapters are completed so I don't stress myself out and get this nightmare!

Oh boy, this chapter was a nightmare! For the life of me I couldn't think of any lesson the twins might teach. This chapter right here killed me and will be short as hell! I didn't know what to do!

Anyway on with the story!

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Chapter 10:

Smoke Bomb

"The sun is shining, I hear Terrible Terrors singing on the rooftops and as I saunter out of my house, I think all is right with the world!" Sigurd exclaimed as he hit his head against the stone wall, of the training ring. Freya raised an eyebrow, "You sound like dad when mum is giving him a lecture on how not to let Rolf sky dive at the age of five." She chuckled at a memory she was remembering.

Ignoring her statement, Sigurd began to pace; he threw his arms around wildly as he muttered, "I realise now that the gods hate me! Why was I left on an island where my teachers would try to kill me? Why am I stuck with Ruffnut and Tuffnut, who'll teach us how to die faster!?"

Hel and Hal gazed up at the raven haired teen, guiltily. They shifted, uncomfortable with the situation they were in. Unlike their father and aunt, Hel and Hal were not destructive: they only pulled harmless pranks and never fought with each other before. The twins were also not bright or intelligent enough, while the red-head twins were not as intelligent as Egil or Sigurd, though enough to not be baby-sitted. They were more light-hearted and the type of people to comfort others; so their pranks were to lighten people's days, not ruin them.

Ruffnut and Tuffnut waltzed into the arena with smug smirks; their Zippleback towing behind them. As they reached the front of the class, they dramatically threw all sorts of weapons in front of the teens. "Today, my dear students," Tuffnut began while Ruffnut continued, "We'll be teaching you how to make weapons out of your dragon's abilities." The dragons eyed the objects on the ground, their pupils widening in interest. As the teens inspected the objects as well, the Thornston twins snook out of the arena. When Hel and Hal noticed their absence, they also found a note: _"Gone to do our jobs. Setting fire to Not-so-silent Sven's sheep if you need us!"_

So the teens separated, with their dragons, to figure what they could do with their dragons. Egil had Venus change different colours and took his old skin, to use as camouflaged outfits. Firefly made weapons out of her honey-like goo for Bjorn and Freya copied some of Stormchaser's techniques on flexibility. Hel and Hal were trying to get their dragon to shoot electricity, though they couldn't get the power to hit a target.

Sigurd sat cross-legged on the stone floor, a scowl plastered to his face as he was in deep thought. His dragon cooed, curiously. His eyes twitched upwards to the dragon curled around him. He snorted and returned to his thinking. Sigurd's eyebrows lifted up and his mouth hung open as a light-bulb seemed to switch on above his head. He jumped up and raced to his house, Shadowheart following closely behind. When he entered to small house, he began rummaging through the countless drawers and boxes. He found pieces of scrap metal, which he began to merge together. The sun had dipped and washed all its colours into the sea, when Sigurd managed to craft a dozen of 'palm sized' canisters. He popped the lid off all of them and directed Shadowheart's smoke breath to fill inside them, once done he quickly gathered everything and rushed back to demonstrate what he had created.

"Here you see are a bunch of little egg-like containers-" Sigurd held up his hand with the object in it. He threw back his hand and tossed it -"what they contain is smoke. This will add to stealth operations, as well as quick sneak attacks and distractions." The smoke peeled out of the bottle and began to seep everywhere in the arena.

"That's impressive, but I want some more action and pain!" Freya chipped in as her dragon began to sweep the smoke out. "I'm not all for the sneaky part of battle. I just want to show who's boss." She raised a balled fist to the sky and held a triumphant smile. Egil rolled his eyes, "What are we going to be doing on the last day of training?"

"I believe my dad said something about flying and falling," Bjorn shrugged as he hovered over to Sigurd's side.

"Great, falling to our deaths seems entertaining; pain, love it!" Sigurd's sarcasm made Egil scoff and pull his glasses to balance on his nose.

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I'm gonna leave it there, because I can't take another paragraph of this! I wish I had inspiration on this one, but sadly not. Alright, next week's chapter will be something to look forward to, I hope. I'll try to make it longer and more exciting! Anyway, please review, follow and favourite for more chapters!

-Draco


	12. Flying Relaxation

This chapter has been hard to focus on and it's taken me months to figure out a way to finish it. You may notice the difference in writing; I have improved since the summer holidays. Shocking! Another quick note is that I am swamped in class work and won't be able to update for a while; I doubt chapter 12 will be out by next week, but I'm not dropping the story! I just need some time to collect myself and finish everything else off. Until then, please enjoy this eleventh chapter...

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Chapter 11:  
Flying Relaxation

The teens were lined up at a cliff outside the village; their dragons were seated by their respective riders.  
Hiccup was mounted on his dragon, he wore his flight suit. His helmet clung to his hip as he cupped his hand around it.  
"Today you will be executing your first flight with your dragons. We'll take it slow and build up to free-falling," he announced as his dawned his mask.  
The gears twisted, as Hiccup's foot shifted; Toothless leapt into the air and began to soar across the sky.

Freya climbed on top of Skychaser and ushered the dragon to the air. Egil hooked his arm around Venus' neck and swung upwards, so he was nestled on the back. Bjorn was already in the air, struggling to wrangle his dragon under control. Hel and Hal had their dragon close to the water, so they didn't fall off. Shadowheart wagged his tail playfully, as he dodged Sigurd once again. The teenager huffed and collapsed to the floor, his breathing was heavy and fast. "I give up you useless reptile!" he exclaimed, as Shadowheart's tail slapped his face. He managed to hold the tail down and mount the dragon.

He steered the dragon towards the edge and managed to get the Nightwing to obey his command of flight. Shadowheart glided over to Hiccup as he began explaining the lesson, "right now I want you all to get your dragons to glide towards the sea stacks down there-" he pointed to a few specks where water lapped at the edges- "if you can't get the landing... Well I hope you like swimming."

Sigurd gripped the neon green tuft and pushed the growing lump back down his throat. He pressed the fur to the dragon's scaled back and felt as Shadowheart dipped towards the stacks. Wings spread, Sigurd could tell that the wind soared past them smoothly; because the wind whipped past his face, sending invisible daggers at his skin. The air tugged at his hair and clothing, making them flail around. The dragon levelled out as they neared the stacks, tilting his wins backwards as to act as a parachute. He extended his claws and gripped the edge of the rock; he continued to flap his wings, as to keep balance as he scrabbled up the crumbling material. Twisting his head upwards, Sigurd watched as Freya and Skychaser began to arc towards him.

He watched as Skychaser tucked in her wings, forming a speeding arrow or blur. He had to squint to see the auburn haired girl tucked away behind the Stormcutter's frill. Sigurd guessed that being there meant that she would not be effected by the wind's force. It seemed like a good strategy in battle as well: the enemy would not be able to get a clear shot of the rider and the frill would be hard scales- which meant that the dragon would not be harmed too. Snapping out of his daze, Sigurd saw that the Stormcutter had released all the wings. In a perfect X-formation, Skychaser smacked them down as she tried to slow her descent. Her landing for rough and she seemed to bounce three times before stopping. Freya popped out of her sitting position with an ear splitting grin. The dragon lowered its head to the ground to allow the teen to jump off. She crooned in concern, checking Freya for any injuries while landing. The Haddock batted the dragon's face lightly and made her way to Sigurd, so she was directly in front of him; "How'd I do then?" She asked, her forest green eyes lighting up in curiosity.

"The landing could use work, but other than that I thought it was fine." Sigurd replied in a mono tone.

"I did feel Skychaser banking to the left a bit at the end there," she admitted, shyly rubbing her hand against the back of her neck. A blush crept up to her cheeks. The others flew down in a similar manner: slightly wobbly, or flying down to fast. Hiccup suggested moving on to manoeuvring around sea stacks.

Egil volunteered to go first. Mounting Venus, he studied the rock formations ahead of him. His eyes calculating them coldly. He urged his Hobblegrunt into the air, steadying out as they came close to the rocks. Egil twisted Venus into weaving between them and slowly they began to pick up pace. Venus began doing tumble-turns, flying upside down and even turning side ways to fly through cracks. At the end, Egil tilted Venus upwards, making the dragon twirl in the air. They both landed back to where the others were. Bjorn and Firefly were shooting targets (Hiccup had suggested working on different things), while flying at top speed. Each time they missed. The Jorgenson decided to tackle the obstacle differently: by firing at a slower pace. The improvement succeeded in destroying half the targets. Bjorn hollerred with pride, while Firefly whistled approvingly. The red-headed Thornston twins were flying underneath the water with their dragons, Shock and Wave. The pair were testing their ability to hold their breath underwater, in case they needed to execute a stealth operation. Five minutes were their longest time.

Sigurd was seated on the rocks, feet dangling over the edge. Shadowheart was sat beside him. Hiccup was standing a bit away with Toothless, the two were both studying the progress of the other riders. Hiccup's eyes shifted to a shadow that was drawing nearer. "It would seem we have company." he stated, steeling his emotions so Sigurd couldn't tell what he was thinking about. The raven haired teen's eyebrows flew up in confusion, "Who is it? Enemy or ally?" Before the chief could answer a Monstrous Nightmare landed, smoke bellowing out of its nostrils. A young man with navy blue hair and a helmet- too large for his head- tipped over one eye. His attire was simple Viking garments. "Gustav, what are you doing here?" Hiccup demanded, his voice laced with curiosity.

"We've spotted some ships on the South horizon, they're headed to the docks" Gustav informed the chief, urgency flowing out of his mouth. Furrowing his brow, Hiccup mounted Toothless; Gustav and the rest of the teens swiftly following.

When they arrived back at Berk, the sun was dipping below the sea; the sky was washed with red, orange and yellow-each colour swirling into one another. Dismounting, the group hurried over to the South side of the island. Astrid, Snotlout, Fishlegs, Ruffnut and Tuffnut were already there. They each had a frown plastered the their faces. Once Hiccup was in their sight, they gestured for him to look through the telescope (A new portable creation by Hiccup himself). "There is more then one ship" He stated calmly. Sigurd curiously stepped forward, "What are we to do, Chief?"  
"We prepare for visitors, hopefully they are only here for trade or directions-" he pinched the bridge of his nose and released an exhausted sigh- "I don't want to be fighting any more people."  
The teens exchanged concerned glances: they all knew that Hiccup had a lot to deal with, being chief and all. He had to sign peace treaties, hold meetings, help villages with dragon problems, stop wars. You name it, he's done it!

"Yeah, let's hope..."

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This one chapter has taken me quite some time: I didn't know how to approach it and I had different scenarios going on in my mind. Of course, I settled for this one because it was the easiest to perfect. I also had to leave you on another cliff hanger. Anyway, till next time please review, follow and favourite for more chapters!

-Draco


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